Kashmiri Sash

This Kashmiri sash was made in the Kashmir Valley in the 19th century. It is made out of fine red wool, and both ends are decorated with buta (or paisley) designs. The work was done in a laborious double interlocking twill tapestry technique. Kashmiri sashes and shawls were originally worn by Indian men but as their popularity increased in the West they became staples of European and American upper class women’s wardrobe.

Kashmir sashes and shawls originated in the Kashmir Valley, where they were woven by innovative textile specialists who figured out how to create incredibly warm, soft, and light cloth from the inner coat of goats living in the Changthang (Himalayan plateaux).

Kashmir production flourished under the Mughal emperors, especially Emperor Akbar and his son Jahangir, whose interest in the natural world combined with the colonial influx of European florilegia and herbals may have influenced shawl designers to include a variety of florals into these once plainly-designed textiles. Persian and European markets also exerted their influence in the patterns and imagery the shawl designers chose to pursue.